Bingo review 10: Book Club
I work at a regional state university. Earlier this summer, we got an email containing a book club invitation that will begin a series of events designed to reflect each of the institution’s official values. Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist was chosen in association with “adaptability”, and probably also in association with the current focus on race and racism in the US. According to the accompanying flyer, this group will meet monthly throughout the fall semester digitally, addressing about 4 chapters each time. Since this title was on my TBR list anyways, I signed up. I decided to read the whole thing through now so that I won’t be pressed for time during the regular semester.
Of the race-themed reading I’ve done so far, this is probably my favorite. It looks at racism via intersectionality (and yes, this term is directly used in the book though not until surprisingly late) and how American history and culture has made identifying the problems of racism and effectively addressing it so difficult. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of the issues, such as biology (and racism), body (and racism), culture, color, class, space, gender, and sexuality {and racism}. There are two things that hold all of these approaches together; first is Kendi’s autobiographical journey as he grapples with many of these issues himself, and second is his concept that everyone can be and sometimes is racist, intentionally or not. Being antiracist takes continuous effort and it’s not really possible to be perfect at it, according to Kendi.
The combination of personal and greater American history as well as the idea that racism is an intersectional problem makes the nature of many of the problems associated with racism much easier to see. Kendi does not offer specific and detailed solutions though, and this is largely because he traces racism largely to policies, both official and unofficial. The implication that everyone has to continuously work on themselves to become and remain antiracist, and that society can change because individuals are capable of change is a useful thought. The difficulty is definitely there, but in his final cancer metaphor, it is curable but that can involve serious treatment that breaks things down in order to rebuild them healthy.
